I start to get ready for work at one-thirty in the morning.
I make more preparations for work at two-thirty five in the morning.
Some of my last efforts to head to work are completed at three-fifteen in the morning.
Then, my alarm goes off and I wake up …
Perhaps you are wondering how I am getting ready for work when I am sleeping.
Well, while the times may vary, the times I mentioned represent periods when I am awake and thinking about going to work. Often I will think about the prison and then feel discouraged that I am going back there in a few hours. Other times I may feel anxious about a situation I know I will be facing. Still other times I just feel a general sense that I am not ready to get up and face another day.
When I first started experiencing these type of thoughts, I would just meditate on them, which would only make me feel worse. Yet, over time I realized that these experiences were just highlighting my need for God and His strength. So, when I say that I am “getting ready for work” through the night, I am really talking about how I am praying to God. I ask Him for strength. I tell him I need His help to get ready. I lay before Him the things that make me anxious. I ask Him to help me be mentally ready by the time I leave the house. The interesting thing is that my job always seems much worse during the night. Then I wake up, put my feet on the ground and take a shower, and by then, I feel much better. I am convinced that my improved mood and thought life is an answer to prayer. It is God’s response to my mid-night preparations.
The good news is that some nights my sleep is much better than described. There are also nights when I wake up, and my anxious thoughts are not with me. Either way, God promises to help us in all circumstances – even if it is in the middle of the night.
Many people see anxiety as an unwelcome visitor. I understand. It doesn’t feel comfortable. For me, I have learned to see it as a sign that I need to be in prayer. Anxiety comes when we feel like we can’t handle what is in front of us. Peace comes when we ask God to help us deal with the realities of life.
I hope you have learned to turn your anxieties over to God. I am not saying that you have to pray to Him all through the night, but I do recommend that you don’t let your anxious moments pass without passing them on to God.
He alone can get you ready.
“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.” – Psalm 34:4
For Jesus,
Rob